Food Security for Pacific Peoples in New Zealand

Food Security for
Pacific Peoples in
New Zealand
A report for the Obesity Action Coalition

ISBN 978-0-473-14661-0.

Table of contents
Foreword 3
Authors of this report 4
Advisory committee 5
Acknowledgements 6
Executive summary 7
How may the information in this report be useful
useful to you and your community? 8
Advocacy 8
Literature review 9
Historical background 9
Context in New Zealand 9
Why are Pacific people different? 10
What does New Zealand research tell us about
food security for Pacific peoples ? 18
Pacific Islands Families Study 22
What Pacific experts and professionals said
for this report about food security for their
community? 29
What changes would you like to see made? 29
Local food supply: supermarkets 29
Local food supply: stores, liquor outlets and markets 31
What are organisations/groups doing? 33
Examples of what is working well in your area 35
Examples of what is not working well in your area 36
What about the education of Pacific children? 36
Other information 37

Compendium of interventions 39
Gardening Project 40
West Auckland Pacific Health Promotion Projects 41
Healthy Kai Programme 42
Pacific Health Leadership Development Programme 43
Fresh for Less 44
Certificate in Pacific Nutrition 45
Health Promoting Church Programme 46
Healthy Village Action Zones Programme 47
Recommendations 48
Requirements 48
What should the messages be? 48
Opportunities 49
Glossary 52
References 53
Appendices 56
Appendix 1: New Zealand Pacific population
geographical location 56
Appendix 2: Questionnaire with key themes
and questions 57

Foreword
MATIKE MATIKE te tumu toro enua o avaiki
“ Mouria te tiki iakoe, kavea te kura iakoe”
“Rise up stand up Pacific leaders, take hold of the message and share it”
The term “leaders” is used in the broader sense and includes grandparents,
parents, aunties...
Food plays an important social and cultural role in all Pacific societies, over and above human
biological needs for nourishment and survival. In traditional settings, food is used as a means
of maintaining societal norms and practices and affirming one’s identity and place. There are
clear rules and expectations with regard to the production, preparation, storage, distribution
and consumption of food. Indeed, food defines people and cultures.
When Pacific peoples move across oceans to new lands and new cultures, they face new
challenges as they adapt to their new environment. While food retains a central role, the
social, economic, cultural and political landscape demands significant changes in the way they
obtain and consume food. For most Pacific peoples in New Zealand, the environment has been
described as “obesogenic” and not conducive to consuming food that is healthy, wholesome,
nutritious and affordable. Diets and food items that are actively marketed are not consistent
with evidence-based advice on what constitutes a healthy diet.
This report provides a comprehensive account of the challenges faced by Pacific New Zealanders
in their quest for food. It provides a good account of the enormity and complexity of the task
of ensuring access to food. A detailed account shows the factors which help or hinder access to
food. The report draws heavily on various surveys of nutrition carried out in New Zealand over
the last few years. It is a distinct advantage that we have good information about the challenge
we face.
Despite the size and nature of the challenge, the report also identifies a number of communitybased
prevention initiatives that show promise. This is encouraging because the whole world is
short of interventions that are known to be effective. It is essential that actions are taken across
all sectors of society. It is well established that health and social problems are more likely to be
addressed if affected populations are actively involved in the design and delivery of preventive
and treatment services.
Kia monuina
Dr. Colin Tukuitonga
Chief Executive
Ministry of Pacific Island Affairs
Wellington
March 2009
3

Further copies of this report are available from the Obesity Action Coalition. Phone +64 4 473 8031.
Published in March 2009 by the Obesity Action Coalition, PO Box 12-115, Wellington
ISBN 978-0-473-14661-0
Citation: Rush E. 2009. Food Security for Pacific Peoples in New Zealand. A report for the Obesity Action Coalition.
Wellington: Obesity Action Coalition.
www.obesityaction.org.nz
Authors of this report
This report was developed and compiled by Professor Elaine Rush from AUT University with
the assistance of Iutita Rusk, Connect Consultancy, iutitar@xtra.co.nz.
Members of the Pacific Island Food and Nutrition Action Group (PIFNAG) were actively
involved throughout the process.
Disclaimer
The views expressed in this report are the personal views of the authors and should not be taken
to represent the views or policy of the Ministry of Health or the Government.
4

Name Position/Organisation Location
Anna Bailey Health Star Pacific Auckland
Maria Cassidy* Nutritionist, The National Heart Foundation of NZ/Pacific Islands Heartbeat Auckland
Tai Faalogo* Health Promotion Practitioner Auckland
Paul Fakalago* Environmental Health Officer, ADHB Auckland
Eseta Finau* Tongan Nurses Association Auckland
Mafi Funaki-Tahifote*
Advisory committee
The advisory committee has significantly contributed to this report. The advisory committee includes:
Team Leader, The National Heart
Foundation of NZ
Auckland
Ngatokoa Gifford-Kara Sport Hawkes Bay Hastings
Moera Grace Practice Manager, West Fono Auckland
Joanne Hyde Ora Toa Health Unit Porirua
Angela Margaret Johnson Health Promotion Advisor Wanganui
Peta Kurrulus Kaute Pasifika Trust Hamilton
Tolotea Lanumata University of Otago Wellington
Manaia Laulu Year 11 Dean, Manurewa High School Auckland
Melissa Lelo* Health Promotion Advisor, ProCare Auckland
Agnes Maddren Pasifika Community Trust/Northland DHB Whangarei
Polla Matawalu* Diabetes NZ Auckland
Helen Mavoa Deakin University, Melbourne Australia
Ta’i Matenga-Smith* Lagimalie Clinic Auckland
Soana Muimuiheata* Consultant Dietitian, ProCare PHO Auckland
Raetea Ngatama* Nutritionist, West Fono Health Trust Auckland
Lee Pearce Pacific General Manager, Capital Coast DHB Wellington
Kasalanaita Puniani* Pacific Women’s Health/Middlemore Hospital Auckland
Aseta Redican Pacific General Manager, Auckland DHB Auckland
Louisa Ryan Heart Foundation Manager, Pacific Health Auckland
Wayne Samuela Kokiri Hauora Wellington
Palolo Scanlan Ex Hutt Valley DHB Lower Hutt
Manu Sione Pacific General Manager, Counties Manukau DHB South Auckland
Iuni Stowers
Health Promoter, Population Health Services,
Waikato DHB
Tokoroa
Anne Trappitt Heart Foundation Christchurch
Colin Tukuitonga CEO, Ministry of Pacific Island Affairs Wellington
Tolotea Lanumata University of Otago Wellington
Sione Tu’itahi Workforce Development Manager, Health Promotion Forum of New Zealand Auckland
Sione Tupou* Health Promotion Advisor, Community Child Health and Disability Service, ADHB Auckland
*Member of the Pacific Island Food and Nutrition Action Group (PIFNAG)
5

Acknowledgements
Thank you very much to everyone who contributed to this report. More than 80 Pacific people
and health workers contributed through completion of questionnaires, discussion by phone and
participation in discussion groups.
We particularly acknowledge the valuable feedback and advice the Whangarei Pacific
community and 2008 Certificate for Pacific Nutrition classes provided for the report.
We thank Jewel Wen, MPhil, for technical and co-ordination support.
Thank you to the Pacific Islands Families (PIF) study team and participants for their
contributions.
Note:
The Pacific Island Food and Nutrition Action Group (PIFNAG) was born out of concern
by Pacific health professionals and community leaders about changes in lifestyle and the
epidemic of increased body fatness. Based in Auckland, PIFNAG is made up of dietitians,
nutritionists, community health workers, community leaders, nurses, researchers and social
scientists. PIFNAG is a voluntary organisation that runs on the passion and commitment of
its members, as well as the goodwill of employers who allow their staff to take part in
its activities. To join PIFNAG please contact the treasurer, Kasalanaita Puniani: Naita.
Puniani@southseas.org.nz
6

Executive summary
This report provides a review and an overview of the 2008 situation for food security in
New Zealand for Pacific peoples. During the writing of this report a “global financial crisis”
occurred which compounds the global food security crisis.
The purpose of this report was to identify key determinants of food security in New Zealand
in the context of the lives of Pacific peoples by using evidence and key informant input from
Pacific peoples throughout the country.
The aim was to inform advocacy about how to support and celebrate the strengths of the
Pacific community and improve their ability to consume the required quantities of healthy
foods every day.
Food insecurity is an escalating problem, particularly for households with children.
In 1997, 60 in every 100 Pacific households reported that they could always afford to
eat properly.
In 2002, 46 in every 100 Pacific households with children reported that they could always
afford to eat properly.
Pacific peoples have picked up the challenge of food security and there is much good work and
many intersectorial initiatives in place. If these continue to be supported they should have longlasting
effects within Pacific communities and future generations.
Examples of initiatives include:
• leadership training for Pacific health professionals
• church-based interventions supported by district health boards
• training of Pacific community health workers in how to deliver nutrition education
within their communities.
These actions will not be successful unless policy and the environmental infrastructure also
offer support. Healthy food is more expensive than less healthy food, not as easy to access
and not always as tasty.
Food security will only be improved if bold, intersectorial and far-reaching actions are taken
now. It is vital for public health that communities are protected from malnutrition. Central
and local governments must make and enforce regulations for food supply and access
that avert this crisis.
Food security issues are closely
linked to social and economic
development.
7

How may the information in this report be useful to you and
your community?
Use the information to make submissions to lobby – pester power!
Write letters to Ministers of the Crown.
Include in and use to support applications for funding to improve food security.
Align with “Healthy Eating – Healthy Action” (HEHA) activities.
Raise collective awareness of food security and issues highlighted in this report.
Advocacy
Use the information when talking to the media.
Spread the news – through networks.
Mobilise community action – encourage others to take action on local policies and recognising
local values.
Talk with the local and national food suppliers about how they can make changes.
Build the voice of Pacific peoples in relation to food security.
Read the recommendations at the end of this report and act where you can.
8

Literature review
Historical background
Following World War II food security was considered only from the point of view of physical
availability of food, particularly for the “poor” of a country. In the following years, the concept
has extended to include the role of economic access, the fact that women and children tend to
be less well nourished than men and that micronutrients are essential to a balanced diet; this is in
addition to standards for food hygiene and safe drinking water (Maxwell, 1996). Now with food
and energy costs rising, the availability of water decreasing, global warming and financial crises
imminent, it is recognised that there is an increasing need to protect vulnerable communities
from food insecurity and the associated decline in health and increased burden of disease
(World Health Organization, 2008).
Definitions and understanding of the term “food security” vary but at the individual, household,
national, regional and global levels there is the same meaning. All people should have access
at all times to, and be able to consume adequate quantities of, foods and liquids (including water)
that are required for health. Two definitions are:
Food security exists when all people, at all times, have physical and economic access to
sufficient, safe and nutritious food to meet their dietary needs and food preferences for an
active and healthy life (Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, 1996).
Food security is the ability of individuals, households and communities to acquire
appropriate and nutritious food on a regular and reliable basis by socially acceptable means
(McIntyre, 2003).
For the purposes of this report the definition was reworded to apply at a community level.
Food security means having easy access to enough
healthy food every day. It must be culturally and
socially acceptable.
Context in New Zealand
This report focuses on information available about Pacific peoples in New Zealand that has
relevance to the topic of “food security”. A good overview of food security in New Zealand,
along with the determinants of food security and information sources, is provided in the
companion document Food Security among Māori in Aotearoa (Te Hotu Manawa Māori &
Obesity Action Coalition, 2007).
The New Zealand Ministry of Health definition is:
Food security is access to adequate, safe, affordable and acceptable food.
9

What makes a community “food secure”?
Food security is a complex issue and means many things to many people. Food security
is determined by what foods are available and the resources and the knowledge (and desire
and motivation) to access and use that food (New South Wales Centre for Public Health
Nutrition, 2003).
A simple supply and demand model does not take into account the fact that food security is
a goal and is not simply a matter of food availability. Food availability is determined by
location, money, and the rate at which food is consumed. People eat healthy food acceptable to
their beliefs and values. Therefore food security is difficult to measure or categorise in useful
ways unless the context and the people are considered. The determinants of food security keep
changing. One way to conceptualise the meaning of food security is as a goal (Keenan, Olson,
Hersey, & Parmer, 2001), rather than as a perfect situation.
The New Zealand Health Strategy (Ministry of Health, 2000) has goals which are relevant to
food security including:
• a healthy social environment
• reduction of inequalities in health status
• healthy communities, families and individuals
• healthy lifestyles
• better physical health.
Why are Pacific peoples different?
From the recent report entitled Enhancing food security and physical activity: the views of
Māori, Pacific and low income peoples (Lanumata, Heta, Signal, Haretuku, & Corrigan, 2008)
on the views of Māori, Pacific and low income peoples it was noted that there was “unanimous
agreement amongst participants about the desire for better access to food in order to live longer
and healthier lives”. These universal goals and physical, economic, political and sociocultural
environmental factors (Swinburn, Egger, & Raza, 1999) should be considered when talking
about food security for people of different ethnic groups and community settings. This is
particularly relevant in the context of Pacific peoples in Aotearoa, as culture (world view),
geographic location and origin, and socioeconomic status all affect attitudes to and access
to food.
Pacific peoples are distinguished from other groups in that (in general) they:
• have strong affiliation with churches
• have strong affiliation with their islands of origin
• are relatively new immigrants to New Zealand, which differs in culture, language,
climate and resources from their country of origin where they “enjoyed traditionally
diverse ways to achieve food security, through gardening, fishing, hunting, and selling
products or labour for cash” (Barnett, 2007)
• are of relatively young age and low socioeconomic and education status compared with
other New Zealand peoples
• have poorer health outcomes than other New Zealanders.
10

F ood secu r ity issues a r e in f luenced b y :
Ge o grap h i c l o ca t i o n
E t hn i c d i f f ere n ces/ mi x ed e t hn i c i t y
L a n guage
F a mily s i ze
Cu l t ure/ wo r l d v i ew
S t r o n g C h r i s t i a n re li g i o n /ch urc h t i es
Depr i v a t i o n a n d e m p l o ym e n t
S o c i o ec o n o mi c s t a t us ( h ea l t h s t a t us, e m p l o ym e n t,
w o rkp l ace a n d s h if t w o r k )
T im e spe n t i n New Z ea l a n d
Supp ly , access a n d n eed
These influences are considered in detail below.
Geographic location, origin and ethnicity
As at 2001 (NZ Institute of Economic Research, 2003) more than half the Pacific peoples living
in New Zealand were born here and this number is increasing. Younger Pacific peoples are likely
to be less “culturally aligned” than older Pacific peoples in New Zealand (Meleisea & Schoeffel,
1998). However, ethnic/cultural differences exist among Pacific groups and these differences
are also related to the time spent in New Zealand. English is spoken by more than 97% of those
born in New Zealand and 87% of those born overseas. Half of Pacific peoples speak their own
language and the same proportion speak more than one language.
In 1997, of all live births (57,600) in New Zealand, 13% had one or two Pacific parents (Cook,
Didham, & Khawaja, 1999). Three-quarters of the babies with only one parent of a Pacific
ethnicity had a Pacific mother. The other one-quarter derived their Pacific ethnicity only from
their father. This increasing cross-cultural mix of Pacific peoples also needs to be considered in
the context of food security. Methods of classification of ethnicity are beyond the scope of this
report but attention is drawn to the changes in the definition of ethnicity used over time; also,
a person may change their self-identified ethnic group with time.
Pacific peoples are highly urbanised, with 98% living in urban areas in 2001, and 66% living
in the Auckland Region, followed by the Wellington Region (13%) (NZ Institute of Economic
Research, 2003). According to the 1996 New Zealand Census, the Tongan and Niuean
communities are much more concentrated in Auckland than other groups, while the Tokelauan
community predominantly (51%) lives in the Wellington Region. Auckland and Manukau cities
contain over half of all people of Pacific ethnicities in New Zealand. Suburbs such as Glen Innes,
Otahuhu, Mt Wellington, Otara and Mangere are notable for their Pacific communities
(Cook, Didham, & Khawaja, 1999).
11

Pacific ethnic groups
In the 2006 census (Statistics New Zealand, 2006) the population of Pacific peoples was
265,974, comprising:
Samoan 49%
Cook Islands Māori 22%
Tongan 19%
Niuean 8%
Fijian 4%
Tokelauan 3%
Tuvaluan 1%
The most recent population projections for distribution of Pacific peoples in 2008 by the
21 district health boards are provided in Appendix 1.
The Pacific population is a young population (median age 21.1 years) with 38% under the age of
15 years; this is greater than for any other ethnic group in New Zealand. Only a small proportion
(4%) of the Pacific population is older than 65 years.
Family size
Fifty percent of Pacific households have five or more people living in the same house, with 25%
of households having seven or more residents. Pacific peoples are more likely to be living as part
of an extended family (29% cf 8% of national population) and the average number of occupants
for a Pacific household was 5.4 compared with the national average of 3.5 for each household
(NZ Institute of Economic Research, 2003).
Culture/world view
Pacific peoples have strong spiritual and cultural connections with food and family. The ability to
provide plenty of food for the family and visitors is integral. How sociocultural patterns impact
on the eating patterns of Pacific peoples must be taken into account when food security issues
are considered (Mavoa, 2006). Mavoa asks the following eight questions for community-based
interventions.
1. Who accesses, selects, prepares and distributes food?
2. Who influences food-related practices in various settings?
3. Is there a preference for group or individual activities?
4. Are food-related practices determined collectively or individually?
5. Does group or individual influence differ across settings?
6. Do current ideals concur with Western ideals?
7. Do community ideals support/inhibit healthy eating and body size?
8. What values support/inhibit healthy eating and body size?
12

Church ties
The church has a special place in the Pacific community and plays a key role in providing
information and services. In the Pacific Islands Families (PIF) study, 92% of the mothers
reported (in 2000) a religious affiliation and 65% of those made general traditional gift
commitments to family or church (Cowley, Paterson, & Williams, 2004). Two-thirds reported
that gifting to family or church made their household financial situation more difficult. The
research showed that religious affiliation was strongly associated with gift giving – the reasons
why were not explored. The authors also quote a New Zealand Herald article (2003) reporting
that peer pressure was also used to push families to “mortgage their homes, go without food or
become bankrupt” to make payments to churches and to family in their home islands. Gifting
was most strongly associated with being Tongan, Pacific Island born, having a household income
more than $10,000, living in a married or “living together” relationship, having a religious
affiliation and a strong alignment with Pacific culture.
In the Obesity Prevention in Pacific Communities study Fa’asisila (2007) reports that 77% of
2,045 Pacific adolescents in Mangere recorded that they attended church. It was shown that
church attendees were heavier, and had a higher BMI, waist circumference and risk of obesity
and overweight than non-attendees. Information about family income was not collected so this
difference is not able to be explained. It was reported that church attendees more often bought
breakfast and lunch from a shop than had home breakfasts. In the Children’s Nutrition Survey
2002 it was reported that Pacific children were less likely than Māori and New Zealand European
children to eat breakfast at home before school (Utter, Scragg, Mhurchu, & Schaaf, 2007).
Quotes from the focus groups of Lanumata et al (Lanumata et al., 2008) support the existence of
a conflict between culture and health:
Tongan:
“Attending cultural functions is not good for your health.”
Samoan:
“As kids we were not allowed to get off the table until we finish everything on our plate.”
“There is a lot more to it than just the food. It is the gathering of all your
families together.”
Deprivation and employment
Pacific peoples are still mainly concentrated in low-paid jobs, although Pacific participation in
tertiary education is growing (NZ Institute of Economic Research, 2003). It is estimated that
one in five children in New Zealand is living in poverty (Fletcher & Dwyer, 2008). The authors
report that child poverty for Pacific peoples is not able to be determined because of response
rates, but state that 40% of New Zealand children who are not European or Māori live in poverty.
More than one-third of Pacific mothers from the PIF study reported that their homes are
damp (Butler, Williams, Tukuitonga, & Paterson, 2003). At the same time, around half of
Pacific children lived in overcrowded housing (NZ Institute of Economic Research, 2003).
The median New Zealand annual income for adults aged 15 years and over was $24,400;
for Pacific peoples the median annual income was $20,500.
13

Pacific men were most likely to be employed as:
• labourers (23%)
• machinery operators and drivers (21%)
• technicians and trades workers (20%).
Occupations of women of Pacific ethnicity show greater diversity than those of men, as Pacific
women were equally likely to be employed as:
• clerical and administrative workers (19%) or labourers (19%)
• professionals (15%) or community and personal service workers (15%).
Pacific peoples are more likely to be employed in part-time and shift work than other groups.
Pacific unemployment is almost twice the national unemployment rate. We were not able to
find statistics that answered the question on how many Pacific peoples work more than one
part-time/full-time job to supplement family income. Anecdotally it is the experience of many
Pacific parents that they have more than one part-time job.
Socioeconomic/health status
Social and economic factors are known to contribute significantly to health status.
Pacific peoples experience poorer health outcomes than all other New Zealanders across a
number of health and disability indicators; for example, Pacific peoples have higher rates of
cardiovascular disease, stroke and diabetes, and lower rates of cancer survival. They exhibit a
lower life expectancy than other ethnic groups, excluding Māori (Ministry of Health, 2008).
Pacific children have higher rates of hospitalisation for acute and chronic respiratory and
infectious diseases than any other group in New Zealand. Dietary quality and health are closely
linked. For example, a diet low in fruit and vegetables is associated with increased risk of asthma
(Devereux & Seaton, 2005).
Economic environment
In New Zealand food and fuel prices are
increasing faster now (October 2008) than in
the last 19 years!
(Statistics New Zealand, 2008)
Between February 2004 and January 2005, electronic sales data from supermarket shoppers
was used to determine prices of 1000 top-selling groceries. Baskets of “regular” and “healthier”
options were compared. Healthier meat and poultry options were 27% more expensive, healthier
spreads 44% and healthier cheese 19%. Canned fish was a less (10%) expensive healthier option
(Ni Mhurchu & Ogra, 2007).
14

The healthier basket per unit weight contained less energy (29%), total fat (35%), saturated fat
(52%), sugar (56%) and sodium (20%) than the regular basket (Ni Mhurchu & Ogra, 2007).
Myth
A healthy diet costs the same as
an unhealthy diet.
Fact
Healthy diets cost more
Examples: wholemeal versus white bread
Low-fat versus “full-fat” milk.
Myth
The more weight you get for your money
the better the value.
Fact
When fat is removed from meat the more expensive option
may be the best value for money. Key nutrients in meat
include protein, iron and B vitamins which are important
for healthy blood and muscle.
Dried beans like lentils and chick peas are easy to carry
home and provide good protein and fibre to extend soups,
stews and casseroles.
Supply, access and need
As previously stated, food security can be separated into supply, access and perceived need.
• “Food supply” incorporates location of food outlets; availability in outlets; price;
quality; variety; and promotion.
• “Access to food” incorporates financial resources; distance and transport to shops;
knowledge, skills and preferences; storage facilities; preparation and cooking facilities;
time and mobility; social support.
These are described in more detail below with added insights from Pacific contributors.
Food supply can be directly influenced by the food and nutrition system, including food
production, food processing, food transport, food retail outlets, and prepared-food outlets.
15

For Pacific communities it is more relevant to consider the local food supply – within 1–2
km of home. The location and type of food outlets (including supermarkets) and the range of
affordable, healthy foods is a key determinant. Accessibility by public transport or home delivery
could be considered. Price, quality and variety of food are also important but the local promotion
and advertising of foods should be examined; for example fast food outlets near school grounds.
Practical promotion of “healthy eating – healthy action” could be targeted at point of decision for
food purchases; for example in shopping malls, outside supermarkets, bus stops and local dairies.
Food access and perceived need for foods, or the ability to be able to make use of a local food
supply, is directly influenced by socioeconomic determinants such as: employment, income,
education, housing, area of residence and social inclusion. Added to this we buy what we think
we need – and “need” might be for social as much as for physical nourishment.
New Zealand research indicates that the median distance required to travel to fast food outlets in
lower socioeconomic areas is less than in higher socioeconomic areas (Pearce et al., 2007).
It appears that supermarkets are further away (1.2–1.3 km) in deciles 7-10 (more deprived),
while fast food outlets are within 0.7–0.8 km. In less deprived areas (deciles 1-4) supermarkets
are 2.1–2.7 km away and fast food outlets are within 1.2–1.8 km. One of the measures of
deprivation is access to a car. This suggests that physical and time-based barriers are more
significant in low-decile areas where access to cars to transport shopping and the ability to
pay for petrol are limited. Also, local food outlets such as dairies and petrol stations, while
potentially sources of healthier food, are not – and some fast food outlets could be healthier than
others; for example the hot chips project of the National Heart Foundation.
In the most deprived neighbourhoods supermarkets are further
away (1.2–1.3 km) than are fast food outlets (0.7–0.8 km).
In the least deprived neighbourhoods supermarkets are 2.1–2.7
km away and fast food outlets are within 1.2–1.8 km.
(Pearce, Blakely, Whitten, & Bartie, 2007)
One in five New Zealanders is employed in the food industry. Many Pacific peoples are
employed in the food industry, particularly in food service, and their livelihood depends on
continued employment. Within the workplace there is a need to balance access to healthy food
and this could be a target area for intervention.
Nationally rising costs for accommodation, transport and food mean that it is becoming
more difficult to buy appropriate and nutritious food on a regular and reliable basis by
socially acceptable means. People of lower socioeconomic status will be disproportionately
disadvantaged because their income will not increase as fast as costs of other essentials such as
electricity, rent, travel and food. There is very little choice when money is limited.
16

At th e Hamilton Combined Christian F oodban k , i t' s been up
more than 40 % o n a year ago in each o f the past t hree months,
and at th e Salvation Army's 37 f oodbanks nation w i de it w as up
22 % i n the three months to Jun e .
The survey f ound that housing costs no w eat u p m o re than 30 %
o f net incomes f or a t least three - quarters o f the clients at all f our
f oodbanks, and more than 5 0 % o f incomes f or ab o ut hal f th e
clients in Manukau an d Hamilton.
On top o f that , f ood prices rose by 7 % and petrol p rices by 34 %
in the year to June , compared w ith a 4 % rise in o v erall consumer
prices.
W el f are bene f its increased by only 3.2 % in April, i n line w ith
overall consumer pr i ces in the year to last December.
(NZ Hera l d , A ugus t 2008)
Practical community actions are called for.
Mercy Missions
We are trying to encourage people to grow some
vegetables and to find the person with the grape fruit
tree or the orange tree with the fruit lying on the
ground and knock on the door, because it's really
important to get fruit for the children somehow.
(NZ Herald, 16 August, 2008)
17

What does New Zealand research tell us about food security
for Pacific peoples?
Two national surveys have asked questions about household food security. The National
Nutrition Survey 1997, NNS97 (Russell, Parnell, & Wilson, 1999) surveyed adults aged
15+ years – 305 of these were Pacific. In 2002 the Children’s Nutrition Survey, CNS2002
(Ministry of Health, 2003) included 1,058 Pacific children aged 5-14 years. Both surveys divide
the population by ethnicity into three groups: Māori, Pacific, and New Zealand European and
other (NZEO). The findings from these surveys are listed below and summarised in Table 1
which allows comparison by ethnic groups. Table 1 also includes findings from the Pacific
Islands Families study which is described after this section. Numbers below have been
rounded for clarity.
NNS97 – key findings concerning food security
1. 60% of Pacific households stated that they could always afford to eat properly, compared
to 90% of NZEO households.
2. 49.5% of Pacific households reported they ran out of food sometimes or often, compared
to 9% of NZEO households.
3. 38% of Pacific households stated they ate less sometimes or often because of lack of money,
compared to 9% of NZEO households.
4. 49% of Pacific households reported that lack of money affected the variety of food
consumed either sometimes or often, compared to 23% of NZEO households.
5. 29% of Pacific households sometimes or often relied on others for food, compared to 4%
of NZEO households.
6. 15% of Pacific households reported sometimes or often using food grants/food banks,
compared to 2% of NZEO households.
7. 32% of Pacific female respondents sometimes felt stressed about lacking money for food,
compared to 10% of NZEO respondents.
8. 30% of Pacific respondents reported sometimes feeling stressed when there was no food
for social occasions, compared to 10% of NZEO respondents.
CNS2002 – key findings concerning food security (households with
children)
1. Only 46.6% of Pacific households stated they could always afford to eat properly, compared
to 86.1% of NZEO households.
2. 53.9% of Pacific households reported they ran out of food sometimes or often, compared
to 13% of NZEO households.
18

3. 47.7% of Pacific households stated they ate less sometimes or often because of lack of
money, compared to 10.2% of NZEO households.
4. 60.4% of Pacific households reported that lack of money affected the variety of food
consumed either sometimes or often, compared to 27.8% of NZEO households.
5. 29.2% of Pacific households sometimes or often relied on others for food, compared to
5.8% of NZEO households.
6. 19.3% of Pacific households reported sometimes or often using food grants/food banks,
compared to 4.5% of NZEO households.
7. 46.6% of Pacific caregivers sometimes felt stressed about lacking money for food, compared
to 16.5% of NZEO households.
8. 42.4% of Pacific caregivers reported sometimes feeling stressed when there was no food for
social occasions, compared to 14.8% of NZEO respondents.
Further analysis of CNS2002 data by Utter, Scragg and Schaaf (2006):
52% of Pacific children reported that they usually eat or drink at home before school, compared
to 90% of NZEO respondents.
8% of Pacific children reported that they ate or drank something on the way to school, compared
to 2% of NZEO respondents.
Children and adolescents who watched the most TV were significantly more likely to be higher
consumers of foods most commonly advertised on TV: soft drinks and fruit drinks, some sweets
and snacks, and some fast foods.
Pacific children were more likely to watch TV for two or more hours a day than NZEO and more
likely to be high consumers of all the commonly advertised foods and soft drink.
Pacific children have more exposure to
television advertisements for high fat, salt and
sugar foods than NZ European and Maori.
19

Summary of national surveys
The two national surveys (1997 and 2002) provide clear evidence that up to 50% of New
Zealand’s Pacific adults and children have a burden due to food security issues, more so than
other ethnic groups. The surveys also show that the more children a family has, independent of
ethnicity, the more likely the family is to experience aspects of deprivation and food insecurity.
In short, the more deprived the more insecure.
Between 1997 and 2002 there was a marked decrease in food security for households with
Pacific peoples, as well as for Māori and New Zealand European and other (NZEO).
1997
60 out of 100 Pacific households
could always afford to eat
properly.
2002
46 out of 100 Pacific households
with children could always
afford to eat properly.
Recent increases in food and fuel costs are likely to worsen the situation.
Costs of food, energy and transport are not within the control of most people, including
Pacific families.
20

Table 1. Summary of surveys for household food security – percentage who responded sometimes
Can afford to
eat properly
Always Some
times
Food runs
out
Some
times
Often Some
times
Eat less Variety of
food limited
Often Some
times
Rely on
others
Often Some
times
Often Some
times
Use food
grants/banks
Often Some
times
Stressed
about lack
of money for
food
Stressed
when no
food for
social
occasions
Often Some
times
1997 %
NNS
All 86 13 14 2 12 2 23 6 7 2 4 1 11 2 11 2
Pacific 60 37 39 10 37 4 36 12 28 2 14 2 26 6 24 6
Maori 68 30 26 6 24 5 39 9 17 4 14 2 20 7 22 4
NZEO 89 10 9 1 9 1 20 4 4 1 2 0 9 2 10 1
Often
2000
PIF
Pacific 39.6 3.9 33.0 3.4 34.5 4.9 27.7 2.5 13.7 0.4 21.4 2.9 30.3 4.4
2002
CNS
All
(2771)
Pacific
(808)
Maori
(1057)
NZEO
(908)
%
77.8 20.1 18.5 3.6 15.3 2.8 25.6 9.0 10.3 1.5 8.6 0.8 18.1 6.4 16.9 3.3
46.6 47.9 47.7 6.2 44.2 3.5 51.3 9.1 27.8 1.3 18.1 1.2 39.9 6.7 37.4 5.0
64.3 33.6 30.6 6.9 24.5 6.2 31.1 14.1 19.8 3.6 17.4 2.6 27.9 12.1 21.5 6.5
86.1 12.1 10.9 2.1 8.7 1.5 20.6 7.2 4.9 0.9 4.4 0.1 12.1 4.4 12.8 2.0
NNS, national nutrition survey; NZEO, New Zealand European and other; PIF, Pacific Islands Families study; CNS, children’s nutrition survey.
The same indicator questions were used in each survey.
21

Pacific Islands Families Study
The Pacific Islands Families (PIF) study is a longitudinal study designed to increase knowledge
about the health, psychosocial, and behavioural characteristics of Pacific peoples with young
children resident in New Zealand. Mothers of Pacific infants born at Middlemore Hospital
between 15 March and 17 December 2000 were recruited. Maternal home interviews covering
socio-demographic, cultural, environmental, child development, family and household dynamics,
childcare, lifestyle, and health issues were undertaken at approximately six weeks, one, two, four
and six years postpartum. At six weeks 1,376 mothers were interviewed and at six years
1,001 participated.
What does the PIF study tell us about food security at six weeks of
age?
Food security was identified as a major cause for concern when the mothers were interviewed
in the year 2000 when the children were six weeks old. This has been published (Rush, Puniani,
Snowling, & Paterson, 2007) and is summarised under 2000 PIF in Table 1. Conclusions from
this analysis are listed below.
“Food insecurity” is an issue for Pacific peoples – there is a need to identify cheap nutritious
food options.
Convenience foods such as chips, biscuits and crackers are energy dense, low in protein, and low
in fibre (nutrient poor).
Other commonly eaten foods such as deep-fried chicken and corned beef have good protein
content but are expensive (per g/protein) and very energy dense because of their high fat content.
Figure 1. Scatterplot of the relationship between price per serving and amount of protein foods
that provide a large portion of the protein intake for Pacific peoples
22

Healthy options such as chicken, trim milks, baked beans, eggs, wheat cereals, brown breads are:
• less energy dense, more nutrient dense
• higher in protein
• may be higher in fibre (Figure 2)
• similar cost per serve to some convenience foods.
Foods that are particularly rich in fibre, relatively less expensive and often eaten by New Zealand
people include kumara, weet-bix, canned baked beans and mixed vegetables (Figure 2).
Figure 2. Grams of fibre for standard servings of selected foods frequently eaten by
Pacific peoples
Coco pops
Water biscuit
Cream biscuit
Fish fingers baked
Battered fish
Boiled macaroni
Chocolate biscuit
KFC chicken
Arrowroot biscuits
2 minute noodles
Beef sausages
Ice Cream
Chocolate bar
White rice
Doughnut ring
Tomatoes
White bread
Porride (+water)
Orange
Potato crisps plain
Apple
Potato
Canned spaghetti
Brown rice
Pumpkin
Multigrain bread
Crisps flavoured
Taro boiled
Cornflakes
Canned Fruit
Potato fries
Kumara boiled
“Weet-bix”
Canned baked beans
Mixed vegetables
0 2 4 6 8 10 12
grams of fibre from a standard serving
From the PIF study, data collected up to and including 2006, ethnic-specific data and other
information not reported to date in any publication – and some further analysis (unpublished)
relevant to food security – is reported below. This analysis was specifically undertaken for
this report.
Food insecurity was higher in families with two or more children.
Tongan and Niuean mothers reported that due to lack of money, food runs out/eat less/variety of
food is limited, more often than Samoan or Cook Islands Māori mothers.
23

Mothers in all Pacific groups reported that they would rely more often on support and assistance
from others (30%) than from special food grants or food banks (10%).
There was better food security and less stress about providing enough food reported by
mothers who had secondary school or tertiary qualifications, compared to those with no formal
qualifications. One in three reported the household income as less than $20,000 per year. Higher
household income was associated with better food security and less stress.
Birth weight was slightly heavier in the families that reported food insecurity related to lack of
money. Heavier babies were more likely to weigh more at two, four and six years old. This is due
to relatively more body fat and less lean body mass.
Breastfeeding at six weeks was not associated with food security.
Food security at birth is associated with
• a lower birth weight
• higher education level of the mother
• higher household income
but is not associated with breastfeeding in the first 6 weeks.
Longitudinal data from studies of children, food insecurity and overweight are linked (Bronte-
Tinkew, Zaslow, Capps, Horowitz, & McNamara, 2007).
Children who experience food
insecurity tend to weigh more
and have higher body fat at all
ages.
When the PIF study children were one year old their mothers were interviewed to obtain
information about Pacific extended families. The changes that groups and individuals undergo
when they come into contact with another culture were examined (Poland et al., 2007).
Acculturation is a term used to describe the changes related to migration and adoption of the
“mainstream New Zealand culture”, and can be divided into assimilation (high New Zealand,
low Pacific), integration (high Pacific, high New Zealand), separation (high Pacific, low
New Zealand) and marginalisation (low Pacific, low New Zealand).
The mean age of the mothers (when child was 6 weeks old, n=1376) was 30 years; 34% were
NZ born; 81% were married or in de facto partnerships; and 32% had post-school qualifications.
Half the children in the PIF study lived in an extended family household, compared with a
nuclear family. Those born in New Zealand were more likely to live in an extended family.
Larger households were more likely to report food insecurity.
24

The most frequent reasons given for
living in an extended family were
that it was cheaper and for taking
care of the extended family.
For every six mothers: two were classified as high New Zealand, low Pacific; two as high
Pacific, low New Zealand; one as high Pacific, high New Zealand; and one as low Pacific, low
New Zealand. High New Zealand, low Pacific were less likely to report food insecurity than the
other three groups, with the low Pacific, low New Zealand group the most food insecure.
Marginalisation/having low cultural
participation was associated with food
running out, eating less and having less
variety of foods due to having less money a
lot of the time.
25

Pacific Islands Families study at 2, 4 and 6 years
The PIF study children have now been assessed at age six years and it is possible to look at
relationships between body size and growth over the six years and food security at six weeks. No
relationships were seen with food security at six weeks and body size or fatness at six years.
At ages two, four and six years, boys were heavier than girls. As the level of food insecurity due
to lack of money increased, the gap between boys’ and girls’ weights increased. This difference
could be related to the quantity and quality of the foods made available to boys and girls being
different, or metabolic differences by sex, but we do not have the information to answer this
question. We do know that boys are taller, heavier and have bigger heads than girls at age six
years; girls have more body fat than boys. This difference is normal. None of these variables
were directly related to food security or acculturation at birth.
Pacific peoples have high levels of food insecurity and at the same time have increased health
risks due to excess body fat. In both the National Children’s Nutrition Survey and in the PIF
study, one in two Pacific children were classified as overweight or obese at age six years
(Table 2). However, in the PIF study, weight at six years is related to birth weight and weight
gain between ages two and four years. It is of concern to note that the prevalence of overweight
and obese children is higher in the 2006 South Auckland sample than in the 2002
national sample.
Table 2. Pacific children’s body size at six years (obesity and overweight classified by Cole
criteria)
Children’s
Nutrition
Su rvey, 2002
Pacific Islands
Families study,
2006
Overweight
(% )
Obese (%) Overweight/Obese
(%)
Female 33.2 14.7 47.9
Male 31.0 21.3 52.3
Female 32.3 23.5 55.8
Male 30.6 28.9 59.5
The link with food security is weight at birth, providing further evidence that health promotion
and support should, ideally, start with potential parents to give the ongoing health of their
children the best possible starting point.
Increased birth weight is associated with:
• food insecurity at birth
• increased body size and fat at 2, 4 and 6 years
of age.
26

In the PIF study: what were children eating at
age four years?
The 20 foods most frequently eaten by four-year-old Pacific children are listed below.
The average four-year-old child was eating bread at least once a day and potato crisps once
every two days.
Rank
Food item
1 Bread, including toast and bread rolls (more
than once a day)
2 Milk (not flavoured)
3 Apples or pears
4 Breakfast cereal
5 Banana, raw
6 Oranges or mandarins
7 Food drink
8 Chicken
9 Rice
10 Powdered fruit drink
11 Noodles
12 Tomato sauce or ketchup
13 Eggs, boiled, poached, fried or scrambled
14 Yo ghurt or dairy food (all types)
15 Mixed vegetables
16 Other potatoes
17 Juice
18 Carrots
19 Other items of eggs, meat, poultry and fish
20 Potato crisps, corn snacks or chips
(once every two days)
27

Obesity is a form of malnutrition.
Obesity is related to eating an
excess or too much food with
“empty” and cheap calories and not
meeting the other nutrient needs for
optimal health.
Bread and milk were reported as the most frequently eaten foods. White bread was consumed
by eight in 10 children; 7% of children had milk less than once a month or never. Of those who
drank milk, 85% had the standard (dark blue) milk and 11.5% light blue.
White bread and blue top milk are less expensive than the healthier more nutritious and less
energy dense choices.
Consideration should be given to providing,
through bread and milk, healthier less
expensive options.
28

What Pacific experts and professionals
said for this report about food security for their
community
More than 80 people working in heath promotion related to Pacific communities and
organisations responded in writing or verbally to the thematic questions outlined in the
questionnaire (Appendix 2). Most respondents were working in the Auckland and Wellington
regions. Responses were also obtained from Hamilton, Napier, Hastings, Wanganui, Palmerston
North, Christchurch and Dunedin. Ethnicity of respondents included Samoan, Tongan, Cook
Islands Māori, Niuean, Tokelauan, Fijian and European. Word-for-word quotes are in italics.
What changes would you like to see made?
There was a belief that Pacific peoples do make healthy food choices but that access and
affordability to healthier foods such as fruit and vegetables should be improved.
There was a request for more media coverage on training our people how to be more health
conscious. Recurring pleas for the items below were recorded.
• Reduced cost in food
• Change Pacific peoples’ mentality about the benefits of eating healthy
• Food labelling
• Takeaways provide healthy food
• Less of food vending machines in working places
• Decrease number of unhealthy takeaways
• More PI food accessible in central areas
• Healthy eating and physical activity promoted to reduce obesity and prevent premature
death caused by nutrition related diseases
It was very clear that change was needed, welcomed and actively sought.
Local food supply: supermarkets
The location of supermarkets in relation to where Pacific peoples lived was perceived as variable
and some noted that there were other not-so-desirable food outlets close to the supermarkets.
Where your Pacific people live is there easy access to a
supermarket?
• South Auckland – easy access to supermarket as well as takeaways close to the
supermarket
• Where Pacific Islanders live in Auckland determined by where the rest of the family
live. There is little consideration to the location where the food shops or markets
are located
• There are fewer supermarkets in areas with high concentration of Pacific people
compared to other suburbs
• Not really in Grey Lynn, Otara, but yes for Glen Innes, Panmure, Mt Wellington
• In the urban areas yes. Not so good for our rural Pasifika, as the areas are widely
spaced and require travelling distances to reach
29

• The Flat Bush area has easy access to SuperValue, and the Otara end has no access
to a supermarket
• Supermarkets close but a lot of PI people prefer to go to the dairies
How do people transport their food (shopping)?
As the average Pacific family and household is more than five people and it is not unusual to
have seven or more mouths to feed, the daily load of fruit and vegetables could be more than
3 kg or in the order of 20 kg a week!
Modes of transport used to transport food included (most often) cars, walking, bus, bikes, taxi
and a scooter. Car pooling was an option.
Seventy percent of respondents said that a car was required to transport food, 20% would walk
and others chose variable modes depending on what they were shopping for.
Containers and chilly bins were also named as ways to transport food.
• Car and trolley (but it is returned after)!
• In NZ the use of family cars will be important. If it is a home with only grandparents
with their grandchildren who are in primary schools, they will be lucky if they have one
with a driving licence to take them to the shops
Public transport versus need to use a car or walking?
• Use of buses and trains if they are there, but there is a problem that you can only carry
a small amount of shopping from the area where you get off to the home
• Car is the easy way for transporting food – Pacific would not use buses to transport
the food
Not all Pacific households have transportation, therefore public transport is another cost on top
of their weekly bills.
If I need to use public transport I have to walk 15
minutes through a couple of alley ways to get to the bus
stop. I would much prefer to use my car as I will feel
much safer than if I was walking to the bus stop.
30

Local food supply: stores, liquor outlets and markets
Access to food includes the location of the places where food may be bought and also the quality
and cost of the food available. Questions centred around dairies, liquor stores and markets.
Do the local dairies supply healthy food?
There was a perception that local dairies were expensive, sold less healthy food and that
packaged, junk food was available at the dairy.
• Not much variety of healthy food choices in local dairies
• There are mostly packaged junk food and drink in local dairies
• Most of the PI homes are close to the dairy shops that do not sell fresh healthy food and
foods in dairies are more expensive than food sold at supermarkets
• Dairies sell less healthy foods and some sell alcohol
• Yes but outnumbered by unhealthy options
• In South Auckland the number of takeaways available is more of a concern
Very limited fresh vegetables and fruit. One
occasion there was one mouldy cauliflower.
Is the cost of healthy food more than not so healthy?
Prompts were given about the most frequently eaten foods, for example wholegrain bread versus
white, and low-fat milk versus standard milk. Overall there was almost universal agreement that
healthy foods cost more, but some caveats were offered also.
• The low fat milk tends to be more expensive than the standard milk
• The cost of wholegrain breads is a lot higher than the white bread – it is not so much
about the cost but quantity consumed – $2-$5 for wholegrain bread and $1-$1.2 for
white bread
A 1.5L of fizzy drink can be purchased for 89 cents
yet the price o f milk is normally $3. 5 f or 2 l itres.
W e complain that healthy f oods are expensive. Th e reality is they
are chea per than the unhealthy ones – e g i f w e g o t o P AK’n S AVE
to spend $50 w orth o f health y f oods, w e ca n get fr uit, vegetables,
pumpkin, break f ast , cereals , canned f oods , such as baked beans, tin
tomatoes, corn. Shopping o f these f oods w il l last a w eek ; in
compariso n a $50 w orth o f combo K F C t h at w il l l ast only f or a
meal and be more expensive than the f resh health y ones .
31

Is there balance in availability of liquor versus fruit and vegetables?
17 June 2008, Newstalk ZB:
“Prime Minister Helen Clark says it may be time to revisit the Sale of Liquor Act which is
almost 20 years old. She says the number of liquor outlets in suburbs has ballooned since 1989
from just over 6,000 to almost 15,000. Ms Clark says the density of outlets appears to be greatest
in some of the country’s most deprived areas and is associated with binge drinking and
violent crime.”
One of the main tenets of good nutrition is balance, moderation and variety. The balance of
availability of food choices in deprived areas is a concern. A number of concerns were expressed
about the location and the foods and drinks sold locally.
• In South Auckland the number of takeaways available is more of a concern than the
liquor stores
• ALAC should play a larger role in working with local government regarding this issue
as alcohol is available in the local dairy
• A high risk as families on low income may have their resource diverted to alcohol and
gaming machines which would leave even less for food
• Sometime it’s easier to get drunk rather than thinking of what your family could
have to eat
Perception:
In central Christchurch there are about
70 liquor outlets compared with 3-4 fruit
and vegetable outlets.
Are there open markets that supply fresh food nearby?
More than three-quarters of respondents said that markets supplying fresh food were nearby.
• Yes. In South Auckland: flea market and beside the streets sell fruits and vegetables
• No, they are all far away from the homestead – need transport to get to it
• Yes. However, increasing availability of takeaway foods and the large amount of cheap
imported goods may reduce the capacity of the market to provide fresh food
and vegetables
• Not really, apart from the Saturday market under the canopies in Porirua
Takeaways
• Takeaways should provide healthy foods
• Decrease unhealthy takeaways
• There is easier access to takeaways than supermarkets
• More takeaways than liquor stores in my area
32

What are organisations/groups doing?
What activities does your organisation do that help address the
problem of food security in Pacific people?
• One-to-one health education/family home visit/health talks to community sessions
• Provide nutrition education to improve healthy eating at home and support the
establishing of healthy eating policies in the churches
• Visit clients at home and help them prepare safe meals
• Childcare centre
What actions are taking place in your area to improve
food security?
• Addressing good nutrition with portion size/cooking methods
• Vegetable garden
• Food preparation demonstrations in different culture settings
• Sending childcare staff to courses to help identify and promote food security at our
workplaces
What is working well and why?
• Kai Lelei in preschool centre: Pacific parents can see how easy it is to do, and make
healthy foods with their children
• Acceptance of different ethnic groups’ ways of cooking and preparing food
• People enjoy the fruit of their own labour regarding growing own gardens
• Using the same ethnic language in health education session
• Some people are not interested in change
A group o f Samoan f amilies w ho w ere migrated to Te
Kuiti w ho f ound employment a t the meat w ork i n
Bennydale King Country f oun d i t hard to adjus t t o
the f ood i n NZ . P opulatio n Health Services
approached the f ood market, f ruit an d vegetables
outlet to provide t aro , f resh coconuts and green
bananas f or these f amilies. These products are
available f or these f amilies no w .
33

What information, education or communication do you see a need
for?
• Consistent messages about food and nutrition to the public
• Practical cooking demonstration/more tasting sessions
• The traditional recipes for foods cooked in rich coconut cream need to be modified so
healthy tasty ingredients are added so it will taste as good as the original recipes
• More put through the church groups and via Pasifika events
• Workshops on how to eat healthy on a budget
• More visual aids to be translated into different Pacific languages
• Skills were passing down from generations to generation then. Easy access to food
in New Zealand stops Pacific peoples from passing down planting skills to next
generations as well as teaching children about the importance of eating fruit and
vegetables. Now we have to tell the children through education that fruit and vegetables
come from plants and trees that we grow, not from Chinese fruit shops
• Make funds available
Education that healthy food is affordable/change
the perception that all Pacific Island food is
fattening .
• Support mechanisms that help Pacific bulk buy as groups eg church or “village”
• More publicity about programme available
• Promotion of better preparation of food including
- pressure cookers for cheaper cuts
- sharpening knives
- safe food storage
- reducing food waste
- cleaning pots
- cooking classes for fathers!
• There should be stricter guidelines on the suppliers who sell bad/low quality food to
Pacific peoples
Educate Pacific peoples about
eating the Pacific way and smarter
instead of the “white way”.
34

Government/policy actions called for included:
- Removing GST on healthier foods
- Supporting the regulation of how food high in salt sugar, and fat can be
advertised or marketed (through the Public Health Bill)
- Improving physical access and price of healthier foods
- Continuing to provide programmes for generating community awareness,
participation and ownership – and not to expect these programmes to
impact immediately
- Banks and money transfer agencies to reduce their remittance fees
Food industry:
- Dairies that stock fruit and vegetables sometimes do not have fresh supplies
– help improve the quality, cost and availability of fruit and vegetables
in dairies
- Promote frozen and canned fruit and vegetables
- Make the lower fat dairy options the easy choice at local stores – extend the
Fresh for Less campaign
What should the messages be?
• Healthy eating within our budget
• Eat well
• Food portion – control what is put on the plate. For us it is the quantity rather than the
quality, eg when eating out at church functions, birthdays, weddings. We tend to pile
our plates with foods until it is about to fall onto the floor
• Simple one-liners
• Be there for your family by eating healthier
• Pick to eat
• Be healthy, wealthy and wise
• Grow gardens
• The cost of unhealthy eating eg high BP/diabetes/strokes
• Food safety
Examples of what is working well in your area
• Ongoing support provided to family and community groups
• The ADHB Healthy Village Action: Colourful vegetables were served on the tables
in church function/fruits were served in favour of the cakes in some churches
F i f teen p igs/ f east reduced to
1 0 pigs at a Tongan Church
w ith 200 members !
35

Examples of what was not working well in your area
• Not enough health professionals in the area of nutrition, budget and community
programmes in order to support and mentor the community at different levels (living
alone widow, family, church)
• When my students attend Pacific Island gatherings involving food, healthy eating is not
supported – university catering service
• There is a lack of traditional Pacific food on the menu
• Contract duration is often too short to allow health promotion and public health
interventions to bed down and attitude and behaviour changes to take shape
Portion size is not controlled in
social functions because of the self
help method.
What about the education of Pacific children?
Teachers have a very full curriculum. It was emphasised that the messages should be the same
throughout the lifecycle, but the best changes in behaviour would be achieved with early
childhood education that could be followed through in primary, secondary and tertiary education.
At the same time, parents and families should receive and act on the same messages to create a
supportive environment and avoid the work within the education sector being undermined in
the home.
• A continuation of learning that is linked from early childhood all the way through to
secondary school would be the best approach esp. with regards to helping the child be
the “teacher” in the home and family with regards to influencing better eating.
• The role of education is very important but also needs to be relevant and “do-able” in
the context of the age group and ethnic group you are dealing with eg early childhood
education – a great place to start and continue onto primary school and intermediate
• By the time they get to high school, a lot of the eating habits are established and
students are resistant to changing their diet; however, they are involving themselves
in a lot of physical activity and this should be the focus of the material targeted at
secondary school students
• From a curriculum perspective, I would be interested in how “united” different areas
are in terms of delivering the same message, eg moderation etc. The different areas I’m
alluding to are: Food Technology; PE Health; Junior Science; Human Biology; Maths
(working out calories etc); Social Studies (population studies on the diet and food
availability of certain countries)
• From a secondary school perspective – a certain percentage of spending is given to
promotion of sports activities and teams; competitions at lunchtime; focus of Push Play
during their promotion week amongst the staff and students
36

Hindrances to an effective education programme re decreasing obesity etc:
• The high level of transiency – due to the instability of parental income due to lack of
employment; dependence on benefits; broken homes (where the child is moved between
parents and other caregivers) therefore there would be lack of consistent learning
• There is a significant amount of anecdotal evidence that shows the importance of
having a balanced breakfast in the morning esp. with secondary school students. They
often don’t have breakfast or have a poor choice of foods for breakfast
• Easy access to supermarkets (within a walking distance as many PI families have
limited access to private and public transport due to financial constraints)
• Whilst healthy food is promoted, the underlying issue is the cost of the healthy food
(often stereotyped as being more expensive)
• Whilst the healthy food is being promoted at school canteen, my own personal
experience is that students say it doesn’t taste as good as the stuff they have at
the bakery
• Whilst healthy food is being promoted for students, the staff snack machine is
frequented to the point where it needs restocking at least twice a week – this is an area
that would also need a good focus esp. where we need to practice what we preach
Barriers a s sociated w ith education:
• Transiency
• Sta ff snack machine – role modelling
• Not eating breakfast
• Supermar k et access f or ca r egive r s
• Cost o f healthy f ood
• Taste o f healthy food
A more intersectorial approach in the solutions is required, eg policies to exempt Pacific students
from tuition fees at tertiary level – could be a long term and more effective measure to help
Pacific peoples be more educated, improve income, improve housing and nutrition/food.
Other information
• The amount of food that people cater on a feast can be a $10,000 cost, and most money
spent on meat – piglets etc and traditional dishes (yams, taro etc) – and the amount and
types of food provided have cultural and economic significant values etc. (providing too
much on occasion, funeral, birthdays, weddings)
• One of money transferring service in Otahuhu – has a record of $1 million transferred
to Tonga per month, that is a 100% increase over the year/compromising our daily
living to give to others
• Pacific people do shift work or work long hours and do not have the time to
prepare food
• A family home with a bit of land or soil to plant the vegetables or fruit trees will be
lucky for Pacific people
37

• Removing GST on healthier foods has the potential to improve food security
of Pacific people
• Increase education, promotion of healthy eating, and this will take time
• Develop champions and role models (advocates of healthier lifestyle), who walk the talk
as part of social marketing campaigns
38

Compendium of interventions
A search of the Agencies for Nutrition Action database (www.ana.org.nz) found 88 programmes
concerning activity and nutrition with a key word Pacific recorded. There were 915 programmes
in total with most not specifying a specific ethnic target. Rather than trying to report every
project, some “flagship” programmes in a number of different settings are presented in this
compendium. They include gardening, local community shops, food industry and supermarkets,
education, leadership training and churches. In all interventions there is a huge amount of
community involvement, enthusiasm and ownership and also some very long-term, sustainable
strategies in place. The benefits will be enjoyed by future generations.
Gardening Project............................................................ 40
West Auckland Pacific Health Promotion Projects......... 41
Healthy Kai Programme.................................................. 42
Pacific Health Leadership Development Programme..... 43
Fresh for Less.................................................................. 44
Certificate in Pacific Nutrition........................................ 45
Health Promoting Church Programme............................46
Healthy Village Action Zones Programme...................... 47
39

Gardening Project
Provider:
Auckland Regional Public Health Service
Ministry of Education
Auckland Regional Council
Location:
Manukau, Auckland
Setting:
Auckland Early Pasefika Early Childhood Services
Activity:
Work with early childhood centres to create gardens in their centres. Childhood centres planted
carrots, strawberries (NZ fruit and vegetable) as well as taro and green bananas (Pacific peoples
homeland favourite fruit and vegetable).
Give designing gardens workshops to preschool teachers and parents. The fruit and vegetable
gardens are used as a source of learning nutrition and interacting with environment and
physical activity.
Evaluation:
No formal evaluation is commissioned.
The project was established in 2001, and up to 2005, 70 Pacific preschools participated in the
project, involving 500 Pacific children.
Other parts of NZ, for example, Upper Hutt in Wellington, have started their own gardening
projects in preschools and housing projects.
Children labelled their Pacific vegetables and were
responsible for looking after their vegetables. Then the
teacher and children created stories about the vegetables
and their lives.
40

West Auckland Pacific Health Promotion Projects
Provider:
West Fono Health Trust
Location:
West Auckland
Setting:
Pacific early childcare centres, Pacific community groups, Pacific churches and West Fono
Health Trust
Activity:
Training, support and mentoring of West Fono community health team to deliver nutrition
messages consistent with the national nutrition guidelines and food and beverage classifications.
Promoting healthy eating and activity with West Auckland Pacific community groups based on
the Ministry of Health HEHA guidelines.
Supporting Pacific churches to have a healthy eating environment by education sessions and
promotion.
Promoting healthy eating by promoting a family garden for every Pacific family. West Fono
supplies vegetable plants for the families.
Promoting healthy activity – West Fono provides aerobics classes (15 classes a week) in
the community.
Green prescription referrals from the GPs includes Active Families Programme. A full-time
Pacific nutritionist works with families and groups.
Evaluation:
The Pacific Department of Population Health Auckland University has been contracted to
evaluate the aerobics exercise programmes.
41

Healthy Kai Programme
Provider:
The Healthy Kai Programme is an interagency and intersectorial initiative provided by the
district health boards (Auckland Regional Public Health Service), in partnership with the Heart
Foundation, Pacific and Māori providers and territorial local authorities.
Location:
Auckland Region in the Mangere, Otara, Glen Innes and Glen Eden shopping centres
Setting:
Shopping centres, food retailers with ready-to-eat takeaway foods, and community
Activity:
The Health Kai Programme works with food retailers to increase the availability of healthy
“ready-to-eat takeaway foods”, and to encourage shoppers to make healthy choices when
eating out. “Healthy Kai” choices are promoted by point-of-purchase signage, with supporting
information available through the Programme’s primary care partners and local agencies.
Training is provided for staff involved in Programme promotion and implementation. The
Programme works with retailers to extend the range of healthy foods provided.
Each Programme has a working group that directs and oversees activities.
Evaluation:
Evaluation of the Mangere and Otara Projects was commissioned by the Let’s Beat Diabetes and
Healthy Eating – Healthy Action Healthy Kai Working Group, and undertaken by the University
of Auckland’s School of Population Health. A report on the findings was not available at the time
of writing this report.
In 2007 the Healthy Kai Programme was the Supreme Award winner in the Ministry of Health
Innovations competition which attracted 190 entries from throughout New Zealand.
Judges described the Auckland Mangere
Town Centre programme as an innovative
and collaborative approach within the
broader community.
42

Pacific Health Leadership Development Programme
Provider:
Pacific Division of the Ministry of Health and University of Canterbury
Location:
New Zealand-wide
Activity:
Future Pacific leaders have been identified and a programme has been developed by the Pacific
Division of the Ministry of Health and University of Canterbury; this includes formal academic
education that ensures that Pacific values and cultural competencies are embedded in the
programme.
The aim of the project is to develop Pacific leaders who role-model holistic health and in the
future will lead Pacific and other services that promote healthy work environments.
Evaluation:
Ongoing evaluation by the Ministry of Health Pacific branch expert panel.
43

Fresh for Less
Provider:
Counties Manukau Lets Beat Diabetes, and Foodstuffs (Food Industry Group)
Location:
PAK’nSAVE stores in South Auckland
Setting:
The eight-week campaign was between 15 October and 8 December 2007, in three supermarkets
Activity:
Cooking demonstrations using recipes based on the featured vegetables were delivered by health
providers in stores.
Recipe cards used in the demonstrations were given away.
Discounted fruit and vegetables were available in-store at the same time.
Evaluation:
A formal evaluation was commissioned by the Centre for Health Services Research and Policy
in 2008:
• There was a stepped increase in sales of fruit and vegetables at the time of the
intervention.
• Price and in-store cooking demonstrations were the principal factors for the increase
of sales.
• Some of recipes were not appropriate to some ethnic groups.
• Repeating the campaign a number of times throughout the year would be
more effective.
The majority of stakeholders were of the view that short,
sharp, dynamic campaigns repeated a number of times
throughout the year would be more effective as they
would keep the customers engaged.
44

Certificate in Pacific Nutrition
Provider:
Heart Foundation, Pacific Islands Heartbeat, AUT University
Funding provided by the Ministry of Health
Location:
Established in 2002. Most courses are delivered in Auckland, but have also been delivered in
Waikato region, Wellington region, Christchurch, Palmerston North, Tokoroa and Hawke’s Bay
since 2004.
Setting:
Macro environment as this is a “train the trainer” course.
Activity:
Each course is delivered in three parts – healthy eating, healthy lifestyles and life course
nutrition. Together, completion of the three components make up the 15 points/credits Certificate
in Pacific Nutrition awarded by AUT University in partnership with Pacific Islands Heartbeat.
The course content was revised and updated for 2008.
Since 2002 (to the date of this report) more than 400 students have graduated; more than half
are from the Auckland area, followed by Wellington/Lower Hutt, Palmerston North, Napier,
Tokoroa, Hamilton and Christchurch. One in every eight students is male. Most of the students
come from a health background, some are from churches and others from education. Four in
every five students are Pacific, with Māori, European and others involved working with
Pacific people. The majority of students are Samoan with the next largest ethnic groups being
Tongan and Cook Islands Māori.
Evaluation:
A formal evaluation by the Centre for Health Services Research and Policy was commissioned
by Pacific Islands Heartbeat/Heart Foundation in 2007. From the evaluation and ongoing course
evaluation and feedback from students and staff the effectiveness of the learning is related to:
• Pacific focus
• hands-on approach
• simple language
• support and the staff
• showing how to rather than just telling
• supportive, friendly environment
• interest in health and health of others
• cultural appropriateness
• good future career opportunities.
One of the challenges is for groups of 4-5 students who
are given $25 to prepare the day’s food for a family of
six and to follow the food and nutrition guidelines
– and they do it!
45

Health Promoting Church Programme
Provider:
The National Heart Foundation
Location:
Auckland
Setting:
The Health Promoting Church (HPC) Programme is community-based and traverses
Pacific ethnic diversities and church denominations.
More than 30 churches are involved in the Programme, reaching Tongan, Samoan, Cook Islands
Māori, Tuvaluan and Tokelauan people in the Auckland Regions.
Activity:
The HPC Programme is aimed at encouraging and strengthening community participation/action
and ownership of healthy lifestyle programmes, through the empowerment of members to make
positive changes to their health and wellbeing. Individual churches and the Heart Foundation
enter into partnership to establish, implement and support nutrition, physical activity and
smokefree initiatives.
A health komiti (committee) is established and trained by Pacific Islands Heartbeat to lead the
Programme. Church leadership support has been evident by the number of ministers completing
the Certificate in Pacific Nutrition course.
Evaluation:
A formal evaluation of the Programme was undertaken in 2007/2008 by the University of
Auckland’s School of Population Health, commissioned by Pacific Islands Heartbeat/Heart
Foundation. The Evaluation Report showed the HPC is an “appropriate tool and effective vehicle
for reaching many Pacific people in church congregations”, for the following reasons:
• church and ‘whole family approach’
• internal church leadership and support structures
• Pacific focused
• community development approach
• Pacific staff, training and support provided to Health Komiti
• examples of healthy behaviours being incorporated into usual church programmes
• meets almost all 10 listed best practice recommendations for programmes involving
Pacific peoples (Novak, Review of Evidence, 2006).
The evaluation also highlighted areas needing improvement, with recommendations for further
Programme development.
46

Healthy Village Action Zones Programme
Provider:
Auckland District Health Board
Location:
Seven geographic zones within the Auckland District Health Board area
Setting:
Pacific churches
Activity:
Healthy Village Action Zones (HVAZ) is a concept of building healthy Pacific communities
with access to quality health care. It is about community-led development, owned by Pacific
Communities. This initiative between the Auckland District Health Board and the Pacific Island
community is supported by Pacific providers and PHOs to see churches acting as “village hubs”.
Seven geographic action zones have been established, all in areas with high numbers of
Pacific peoples and with strong networks of Pacific churches of many different denominations.
Building on international models of parish nursing and local parish community nursing
initiatives in 2002/03, Parish Community Nurses work with church health committees to develop
and co-ordinate health plans and promotion programmes for parishioners across the seven zones.
What makes HVAZ unique is its integrated model of working with churches using community
action and self-determination to deliver improvements in the health of Pacific families. In the
longer term, HVAZ will provide a platform for bringing agencies outside the health sector
under the HVAZ umbrella to tackle determinants of health and improve services to
Pacific peoples. This is an ambitious and exciting venture with the potential to create a
new model for community-based services in New Zealand.
Evaluation:
Programme evaluation is in the planning stage.
HVAZ has already succeeded in building support from
30 church communities in the development of activities
including immunisation, health screening, exercise
programmes and health promotion.
47

Recommendations
Requirements
The requirements to improve opportunities to choose and consume healthy foods of any
initiative include:
1. Development of a physical environment that promotes and supports healthy
food choices
2. Development of the psycho-social environment that promotes healthy food choices
3. Increasing the profile of culturally acceptable healthy food choices
4. Improving access to foods low in fat, salt and sugar
5. Improving affordability of foods low in fat, salt and sugar
6. Banning access to and advertising of foods high in fat, salt and sugar
7. Increasing the cost of foods high in fat, salt and sugar
8. Alignment with sociocultural traditions to promote healthy food choices
9. Tailoring of ongoing support for education and health promotion in culturally
appropriate ways
10. Promotion of policy change to improve opportunities for healthy food choice in
the environment.
What should the messages be?
• Simple one-liners
• Healthy eating within our budget
• Eat well
• Portion size – control what is put on the plate
• Be there for your family by eating healthier
• Pick to eat
• Be healthy, wealthy and wise
• Grow gardens
• The cost of unhealthy eating, eg high blood pressure/diabetes/strokes
• Food safety
48

Opportunities
Policy
Extend Working for Families-type support to all low-income people, including beneficiaries and
single people without children.
Link benefit levels to food prices instead of general consumer prices.
Develop a strategy to reduce dependency on food banks or relatives and friends.
Remove GST from fruit and vegetables.
Provide vegetables and fruit discount cards (similar to the community services card used for
visiting the doctor).
Town planning should include a balance of type and distribution of food outlets, including
supermarkets. It is critical to have fruits and vegetables/supermarkets around high deprivation
areas, and fewer takeaways.
Local food outlets
Target areas where there is a higher density of Pacific population, particularly the local dairy and
petrol stations, to promote healthier food choices.
Offer cooking classes using foods and tastes that Pacific peoples normally eat, to promote
personal nutrition knowledge and skills.
Provide budgets for weekly menus and shopping lists for quick-to-prepare healthy
Pacific recipes.
Local home delivery service by supermarkets must be cheaper than the cost of a taxi.
Promote local farmers’ markets.
Workplaces for Pacific
(Hospitals, aged care, food supply, fast-food chains)
Ask employers to ensure healthy food choices are available during the work day, eg provide
breakfast, healthier options in vending machines, fresh tap water available at no cost. (Win-win
situation as absenteeism/illness reduced.)
49

Social marketing
Have posters and point-of-decision material, radio, TV – food makeovers.
Use champions and local role models to model healthy choice behaviours.
Labelling and signposting of foods to more easily identify the healthier choice.
Identification and ranking of foods by nutrient density and cost, eg per gram of protein, fibre.
Food industry partnerships
Provide lower fat milk, wholemeal bread etc at same cost as higher fat and white bread.
School milk for lower decile schools – alongside fruit in schools.
Reformulation of commonly consumed foods, eg “food drinks” (such as Milo), noodles
(as Nestlé has done).
Cultural and community occasions
Promotion by leaders of the healthier choices available at community functions.
Catering guidelines and resources developed with each community. Community group food
and drink policies.
Promote use of home and community gardens for food supply.
Provide more community nutrition courses/workshops.
Promote, increase and support
community action initiatives!
Workforce capacity building
Programmes such as the Certificate in Pacific Nutrition, Mentorship and Pacific Leadership
course are having far-reaching impact and should have more funding, continue to be supported
and expanded.
There is a need for more trained Pacific nutritionists and dieticians.
Health promotion and support should ideally start for an individual before birth.
Preparation for work, life-style/life skills at schools should be included in the curriculum.
Must be practical and easy!
50

Education
Promote consistent messages and behaviours across the life cycle starting from pre-pregnancy,
through early childhood centres and on to secondary school.
Educate the taste buds with a variety of foods from an early age.
Make sure the curriculum for healthy living messages is integrated and intersectorial.
Exempt Pacific and other low-income students from tuition fees at a tertiary level.
Practical guide – where and how to put the advocacy messages
Communicate in both English and Pacific languages through the media strategy: a Pacific radio
and/or TV programme about healthy diet, budgeting and success stories.
Work with church administrators to advocate for health committees in each church.
Limit advertisements for junk foods around schools, and for the foods that can be sold in shops
next to schools.
Replace junk foods from vending machine with healthier foods, eg fruit in secondary schools,
milk in primary school.
Educate on how to read food labels and how to choose healthier foods. Make food labelling
more simple.
Use peer-to-peer support and social networks such as sports clubs.
If key community people have accurate knowledge and can deliver this concurrently with
other community activities there may be additional benefits in self care and possibly long-term
clinical outcomes.
51

Glossary
Acculturation
Assimilation
the changes that occur when groups and individuals come into
contact with another culture – acculturation may be further divided
into assimilation, integration, separation and marginalisation
cultural identity is relinquished and the individual moves into the
larger society (high New Zealand and low Pacific identification)
Determinants of health education, employment, income, job security, location of home, social
support and social cohesion
Energy dense foods
Food security
Food insecurity
Integration
Marginalisation
Nutrient dense foods
Poverty
Separation
the amount of calories/energy for weight of food, eg 1 teaspoon of
butter has 45 calories and 1 teaspoon of fresh apple has 3! There is
less water in energy dense foods like chocolate!
individuals, households and communities having easy access to
enough healthy food every day. Food must be culturally and
socially acceptable
not having sufficient food, experiencing hunger as a result of running
out of food, eating a poor quality energy dense, nutrient poor diet with
limited options, anxiety about getting food, or having to rely on others
for food
maintenance of cultural integrity but also movement to become an
integral part of the larger society (high New Zealand high Pacific)
losing the essential features of one’s culture but not replacing them by
entering the larger society
more vitamins and minerals per unit weight and low in calories, eg an
apple is nutrient dense but not energy dense
the lack of something to make one’s life better – poverty
may be defined by falling below a threshold of family resources
including income, accommodation costs and family size
self imposed withdrawal from the larger society (high Pacific,
low New Zealand)
52

References
Barnett, J. (2007). Food security and climate change in the South Pacific. Pacific Ecologist, 14
(Winter 2007), 32-36.
Bronte-Tinkew, J., Zaslow, M., Capps, R., Horowitz, A., & McNamara, M. (2007). Food
insecurity works through depression, parenting, and infant feeding to influence
overweight and health in toddlers. J Nutr, 137 (9), 2160-2165.
Butler, S., Williams, M., Tukuitonga, C., & Paterson, J. (2003). Problems with damp and cold
housing among Pacific families in New Zealand. NZ Med J, 116 (1177), U494.
Cook, L., Didham, R., & Khawaja, M. (1999). On the demography of Pacific people in
New Zealand. Wellington: Statistics New Zealand.
Cowley, E. T., Paterson, J., & Williams, M. (2004). Traditional gift giving among Pacific families
in New Zealand. Journal of family and economic issues, 25 (3), 431-444.
Devereux, G., & Seaton, A. (2005). Diet as a risk factor for atopy and asthma. J Allergy Clin
Immunol, 115 (6), 1109-1117; quiz 1118.
Fa’asisila, S. (2007). Associations between environmental and lifestyle risk factors for obesity
and church attendance among adolescent Pacificans. Unpublished Master of Public
Health, University of Auckland, Auckland.
Fletcher, M., & Dwyer, M. (2008). A fair go for all children. Actions to address child poverty in
New Zealand: Children’s Commissioner and Barnardos.
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. (1996). Rome declaration on World
Food Security and World Food Summit plan of action. Retrieved 2 October, 2008,
from http://www.fao.org/docrep/003/w3613e/w3613e00.htm
Keenan, D. P., Olson, C., Hersey, J. C., & Parmer, S. M. (2001). Measures of food insecurity/
security. J Nutr Educ, 33 Suppl 1, S49-58.
Lanumata, T., Heta, C., Signal, L., Haretuku, R., & Corrigan, C. (2008). Enhancing food security
and physical activity: the views of Māori, Pacific and low income peoples.
Wellington: University of Otago.
Mavoa, H. (2006). The “C” Factor: Cultural Underpinnings of Food, Eating and Body Size.
Paper presented at the Progress in Obesity Research 10: Proceedings of the 10th
International Congress on Obesity. CD: ISBN 978-0-646-47086-3., Sydney, Australia.
Maxwell, S. (1996). Food security: a post-modern perspective. Food Policy, 21 (2), 155-170.
McIntyre, L. (2003). Food Security: More than a Determinant of Health. Policy (Centre for
Independent Studies (N.S.W.), 47, 46.
Meleisea, M., & Schoeffel, P. (1998). Samoan families in New Zealand: the cultural context of
change. In V. Adair & R. Dixon (Eds.), The family in Aotearoa New Zealand
(pp. 158-178). Auckland: Longman.
53

Ministry of Health. (2000). The New Zealand Health Strategy. Wellington: Ministry of Health.
Ministry of Health. (2003). NZ Food NZ Children, key results of the 2002 National Children’s
Nutrition Survey. Wellington: Ministry of Health.
Ministry of Health. (2008, 20 June 2008). Pacific Health. From http://www.moh.govt.nz/pacific
New South Wales Centre for Public Health Nutrition. (2003). Food security options paper:
a planning framework and menu of options for policy and practice interventions.
New South Wales: New South Wales Centre for Public Health Nutrition.
Ni Mhurchu, C., & Ogra, S. (2007). The price of healthy eating: cost and nutrient value
of selected regular and healthier supermarket foods in New Zealand. NZ Med J,
120(1248), U2388.
NZ Institute of Economic Research. (2003). Pacific Peoples in New Zealand: Preliminary review
of development issues. Wellington: NZ Institute of Economic Research.
Pearce, J., Blakely, T., Whitten, K., & Bartie, P. (2007). Neighbourhood Deprivation and Access
to Fast-Food Retailing. American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 32 (5), 375-382.
Poland, M., Paterson, J., Carter, S., Gao, W., Perese, L., & Stillman, S. (2007). Pacific Islands
Families Study: factors associated with living in extended families one year on from
the birth of a child. Kōtuitui: New Zealand Journal of Social Sciences Online, 2, 17-28,
1177–1083X/1107/0201–0017.
Rush, E., Puniani, N., Snowling, N., & Paterson, J. (2007). Food security, selection, and healthy
eating in a Pacific Community in Auckland New Zealand. Asia Pac J Clin Nutr, 16 (3),
448-454.
Russell, D., Parnell, W., & Wilson, N. (1999). NZ Food: NZ People. Key results of the 1997
National Nutrition Survey. Wellington: Ministry of Health.
Statistics New Zealand. (2006). Pacific Profiles: 2006. Retrieved 13 October 2008, from http://
www.stats.govt.nz/analytical-reports/pacific-profiles-2006/default.htm
Statistics New Zealand. (2008). August largest monthly food price increase in 19 years.
Retrieved 4 October 2008, from http://www.stats.govt.nz/products-and-services/mediareleases/food-price-index/food-price-index-aug08-mr.htm
Swinburn, B., Egger, G., & Raza, F. (1999). Dissecting obesogenic environments: the
development and application of a framework for identifying and prioritizing
environmental interventions for obesity. Prev Med, 29 (6 Pt 1), 563-570.
Te Hotu Manawa Māori, & Obesity Action Coalition. (2007). Food security among
Māori in Aotearoa.
54

Utter, J., Scragg, R., Mhurchu, C. N., & Schaaf, D. (2007). At-home breakfast consumption
among New Zealand children: associations with body mass index and related nutrition
behaviors. J Am Diet Assoc, 107 (4), 570-576.
Utter, J., Scragg, R., & Schaaf, D. (2006). Associations between television viewing and
consumption of commonly advertised foods among New Zealand children and young
adolescents. Public Health Nutr, 9 (5), 606-612.
World Health Organization. (2008). Health impacts of the global food security crisis. Retrieved
October 2, 2008, from http://www.who.int/food_crisis/global_food_crisis/en/index.html
55

Appendices
Appendix 1: New Zealand Pacific population
geographical location
Source: Statistics New Zealand
Population Projections
Prepared for Ministry of Health
Ref No: RIS18647
Sum of population Ethnicity
Pacific
2008
DHB name Maori Pacific Other
Grand
Total %DHB
%
total
Auckland 35,710 52,400 354,980 443,090 11.8 19.6
Bay of Plenty 51,370 2,660 152,440 206,470 1.3 1.0
Canterbury 38,310 10,430 445,430 494,170 2.1 3.9
Capital and Coast 30,720 21,890 231,290 283,900 7.7 8.2
Counties Manukau 79,010 100,880 293,380 473,270 21.3 37.6
Hawke's Bay 37,580 4,800 111,260 153,640 3.1 1.8
Hutt 23,860 11,120 107,000 141,980 7.8 4.1
Lakes 34,930 2,490 64,980 102,400 2.4 0.9
MidCentral 30,020 3,830 132,030 165,880 2.3 1.4
Nelson
Marlborough 12,360 1,515 121,740 135,615 1.1 0.6
Northland 49,310 2,330 103,530 155,170 1.5 0.9
Otago 12,970 3,010 169,780 185,760 1.6 1.1
South Canterbury 3,570 415 51,280 55,265 0.8 0.2
Southland 12,590 1,365 96,530 110,485 1.2 0.5
Tairawhiti 21,870 950 23,110 45,930 2.1 0.4
Taranaki 17,760 1,015 88,760 107,535 0.9 0.4
Waikato 76,100 8,480 272,290 356,870 2.4 3.2
Wairarapa 6,070 710 32,900 39,680 1.8 0.3
Waitemata 50,860 36,470 433,770 521,100 7.0 13.6
West Coast 3,170 230 28,710 32,110 0.7 0.1
Whanganui 15,830 1,010 46,610 63,450 1.6 0.4
Grand Total 643,970 268,000 3,361,800 4,273,770 6.3 100
56

Appendix 2: Questionnaire with key themes and questions
Your name:
Email:
Position:
Phone:
Organisation:
Website:
What does your organisation do?
Food security means having easy access to enough healthy food every day. It must be
culturally and socially acceptable.
In your community?
What changes would you like to see made?
Examples below
Where your Pacific people live is there easy
access to a supermarket?
How do people transport their food?
Public transport versus need to use a car or
walking?
Do the local dairies supply healthy food?
Is the cost of healthy food more than not so
healthy e.g. wholegrain bread versus white
bread?
Low fat milk versus standard milk?
Is there balance in availability e.g. liquor versus
fruit and vegetables?
Are there open markets that supply fresh food
nearby ?
By your organisation?
What activities does your organisation do that
help address the problem of food security in
Pacific people?
What actions are taking place in your area to
improve food security?
What is worki ng well and why?
What information, education or
communication do you see a need for?
What should the messages be?
Points you may wish to comment on or add to concerning food security.
Examples of what is working well in your area?
Examples of what was not working well in your area?
Other information relevant to food security
57